Abnormal electrical rhythms in the heart or brain can arise from repetitively firing electrical impulses, sometimes known as focal sources (FS) or triggers. These electrical impulses generate electrical propagating waves in the heart or brain which spread out and collide with one another to create chaotic electrical rhythms. Locating these focal sources and triggers is often essential to treat these abnormal electrical rhythms.
Atrial fibrillation (AF) is a common cardiac arrhythmia characterized by chaotic electric activity in the heart. Computational, animal and human studies have indicated that AF can, in some instances, be driven by discrete periodic focal sources with high frequency. However, finding these focal sources remains a challenge.
A common therapy for AF is catheter ablation where heat energy is delivered to the atrium in order to stop AF. However, standard AF catheter ablation does not work well despite extensive burning in the atrium because the ablation sites may not reliably target the focal sources or triggers that cause AF. Thus, a significant number of patients develop AF recurrence after ablation and need another ablation procedure. Given the prevalence of AF in society, its disabling health consequences, and the constraints on healthcare costs, the success rate of AF ablation must be improved.